Ignoring Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan’s history of anti-Semitic remarks, Mayor Rahm Emanuel on Wednesday welcomed the army of men dispatched to the streets by Farrakhan to stop the violence in Chicago neighborhoods.

Ald. Debra Silverstein (50th), an Orthodox Jew, has said it’s good that Farrakhan is “helping” in the fight against crime, “but it doesn’t eradicate the comments that he’s made about the Jewish community.”

Emanuel offered no such caveat. Although Farrakhan has a history of making anti-Semitic statements, Chicago’s first Jewish mayor has no interest in revisiting that controversy.

He’s more concerned about reducing a 40 percent surge in Chicago homicides that’s become a media obsession and threatens to undermine his efforts to market Chicago to international tourists.

“People of faith have a role to play and community leaders have a role to play in helping to protect our neighborhoods and our citizens. You cannot get there on just one piece of an anti-crime strategy,” the mayor said.

“The police have a role to play. Tearing down abandoned buildings has a role to play. Shutting liquor stores that are a cancer in the community have a role to play. Community leaders have a role to play. Pastors have a role to play. Principals have a role to play. And most importantly, parents have roles to play. They have decided, the Nation of Islam, to help protect the community. And that’s an important ingredient, like all the other aspects of protecting a neighborhood.”

(Blaze) — On Sunday, May 27, Minister Louis Farrakhan spoke in San Diego, California, where he delved into a plethora of subjects, ranging from Mexican heritage to Israel’s alleged “war-mongering.” Among the topics he weighed in on, Farrakhan also took the time to tackle homosexuality andPresident Barack Obama’s recent endorsement of same-sex marriage. […]

This discussion quickly led to Obama’s recent same-sex marriage endorsement — something that Farrakhan seemed immensely turned off by and more than eager to call out. After highlighting the president’s support for gay unions, Farrakhan held up a copy of the issue of Newsweek magazine that calls Obama “the first gay president.”

“Here’s Newsweek magazine with President Obama on the cover with the colors that represent the gay community as a halo over his head and a saying, ‘The First Gay President.’ Now, you think they’re not mocking him?,” Farrakhan said. “Now I’ve never heard from Michelle that our brother, you know, was absent from duty. But he’s the first president that sanctioned what the scriptures forbid.”